These days there are literally hundreds of charities which re-home unwanted dogs, from the large well known ones such as the dogs trust and blue cross, to breed specific charities and the smaller independent rescue homes that simply do it because they want to help. Why are we in a situation where there are so many unwanted animals when we are meant to be a nation of dog lovers? There are three main reasons, one: many people fail to spay or neuter their dogs which then reproduce creating an enormous amount of puppies. Two: people still buy animals from breeders or pet stores thereby supporting the puppy mills that supply them. Three: people buy puppies without actually considering the lifelong commitment, money, time and effort required to care for them; once the novelty wears off they are no longer wanted.

Why choose a rescue dog?

Dogs do not choose or want to live in a rescue they end up there for a wide variety of reasons many which are not their fault. There are many sweet, well-mannered dogs in rescues which would make the ideal pet – not all rescue dogs have behavioural problems. If you are considering giving a home to one of the many unwanted and abandoned dogs; be guided by the rescue staff that spend every day with these animals, they should be able to match you with a dog which will best fit your situation.

Top tips for choosing a rescue dog

1. Prep before you go. Think about what you are looking for in a dog. A couch potato pal? A running partner? A sedate companion for long walks? The answers suggest how young and energetic your dog should be. Consider how much time you have to spare. Housetraining doesn’t take forever but it’s a lot of work, mess and inconvenience while the training is taking place. All puppies and young dogs need plenty of exercise and training whilst young is essential. As for grooming, you will either be doing that or paying someone to do it for you, the decision between a long haired coat/breed and a short haired coat/breed is also something to consider. If you don’t have a lot of time and energy to invest then there are plenty of older, quieter short haired dogs that need homes.

2. Visit the rescue and look for friendly dogs. A friendly dog wiggles when he sees you coming, he may press against the front of the kennel to get as much of himself close to you as he can. His eyes are squinty and his mouth probably opens in a doggy grin. He tail is wagging fairly low and his wags are soft and loose. If he barks it will be an excited happy bark. A friendly dog won’t charge the front of the cage barking deeply at you, he won’t stand rigid facing you head-on, he won’t sit or crouch stiffly watching you out of the corner of his eyes. A friendly dog won’t cower at the back of the kennel or ignore you. Shelter dogs are usually lonely for human company and this shows in their pleasure/excitement of seeing you.

3. Get an expert to help you. Rescue staff should be able to guide you however they will all have their favourites and have stronger bonds with some dogs than others. It is a good idea to ask an independent dog trainer to offer their opinion on the animal you are thinking of choosing; especially if you have no experience of owning a dog. The Kennel Club offer a list of accredited instructors
It may seem strange to hire a dog trainer when you don’t even have a dog however the money spent now could save you a lot of heartache in the future. It’s one thing to take on a dog with behaviour problems and past issues when you have had previous experience and expertise to care for these animals it’s quite another when you’re scared of the neighbours children coming round because your dog will bite them.

Questions to ask yourself when choosing a rescue dog

What is the dog’s body language like?

How is he responding to being touched?

Is he excitable? How quickly does he calm down?

How rough is he when playing?

What’s his reaction to other dogs?

How does he react if approached when in possession of food or a toy?

How does he react at the sudden appearance of a stranger?

Remember taking on a dog is a life altering decision that should be thought carefully about; the average life span of a dog is 10-13 years and annually they cost about £1200 – this is without unforeseen medical bills so a good pet insurance is advisable. Shelter dogs can be unpredictable and may come with more problems, they need your time, love, and attention but most importantly they need training, they need to understand the boundaries and find their place within your family ‘their pack’, the last thing they need is to be adopted only to be returned to the rescue 3 months later.

Max – our rescue dog

We adopted a German Shepherd from Jerry Greens Dog Rescue when he was 9 months old, Max had been born in the rescue as his mum was ‘dumped’ when she was pregnant. Max was very quickly adopted by someone when he was two months old (he was obviously a very cute puppy) but returned back to the rescue a few weeks later as he was getting ‘too big’. Max was toilet trained when we got him however he had no recall skills, would not walk on a lead, was an escape artist and liked to bark. We had no experience with dogs and muddled through those first few weeks – a bit like you do when you bring your first born child home for the first time. One of the first decisions was deciding where Max would sleep, downstairs was the first thought, then he cried at night so we moved him upstairs on the landing, then he moved into in our room and eventually my husband would come to bed at night and have to get Max out of his spot. This was our (my) first mistake, I treated Max like a baby, there were no boundaries he was literally allowed everywhere we were. Over time we did teach Max recall (when he felt like it) and occasionally he walked properly on the lead, however there were many times in the first few years we could quite gladly given up on him; like the time he pulled me over in a muddy puddle because he was trying to fight a black Labrador or the time he got into a field of sheep or the time I had to get into a river because he refused to come out; but you don’t give up on them just like you don’t give up on your children. Max was not perfect he had his issues especially with black dogs and work men in fluorescent coloured jackets but we learnt to understand his behaviour and either dealt with the issues or avoided situations and places we knew would be problematic. In the end we had Max for 10 years and I can honestly say that he was the most loyal, loving companion you could have; he knew how I was feeling and knew when I needed him. When I was pregnant he sat with me every time I threw up (and that was a lot!) and when I had Katy I would often find him curled up near her cot in the mornings. I honestly do believe if you can adopt a rescue dog (and get through it!) you will be rewarded with their undivided loyalty and devotion for the rest of their lives.

Allowing pets in the workplace has long been seen as key employee benefit; however recent studies prove that bringing your dog to work also has key benefits for the employer. A recent American study has proven that people who have dogs in the office are less stressed and overall employee absenteeism was reduced, the study also found that pets triggered workplace interactions that would not normally take place.

Key Benefits:

Employee Morale

Dogs have the ability to lift moods, improve happiness and reduce stress. All the benefits of owning a dog at home translate to one’s work when they have their companion by their side all day.

“Stress relief. My favourite thing about coming home after a long day at the office is being smothered by my dog,” shared Austin Wagner, 26 year-old Business Systems Analyst at SpareFoot, a self-storage unit search company. “It’s wonderful having my best friend at the office all day.”

Employee Collaboration

Dogs are a natural conversation starter in the office. Employees are more likely to approach each other when there is a dog nearby to break the ice. Further, some companies may find that the amount of workplace gossip can decrease when dogs are introduced, as employees would rather talk about the dogs than other employees.

Exercise For Employees

It can be so easy to get sucked into your work first thing in the morning and rarely come up for air, then realise at the end of the day that you’ve barely moved from your desk all day. Office dogs have the added benefit of forcing the owner to bring them outside and walk them.

“The added convenience of being able to take my furry friend out for their midday walk was a relief,” said Kathleen Osborne, Senior Account Executive at King+Company PR, a small boutique PR agency in Manhattan. “The best part was that he forced me to take a break and take a ten minute walk outside. Since I started my job nine months ago, I never really spent more than five minutes outside during the day unless it was jumping into a taxi for an event, meeting, or grabbing lunch next door.”

Time Flexibility

Many employees find themselves rushing out the door at the end of their shift to get home to let their dog out. For employees that have their dog at work, they can extend their hours until their work is done, rather than restricting their time. Kerri-Lynn McAllister, Chief Marketing Officer at Ratehub.ca, a Canadian financial comparison platform, shared her philosophy on time flexibility.

“At a startup, we tend to work long hours and we want to support our employees as much as possible. If that means allowing dogs to come to work, we want to be able to make sure our employees are happy and that we provide an environment where they can be the most productive.”

Financial Benefit For Employees

When you consider the cost of paying for benefits for each employee of a corporation, the total adds up fast. Offering the benefit of having their dog in the office saves employees money on dog daycare or dog walking services daily. It’s a major benefit for the employee that costs little for the company to provide.

Attract Top Talent

Millennials have been known to choose dog friendly companies over their competition when most other considerations are equal. This perk weighs heavy for the young adults whose dogs are treated much like children.

“For me, it easily outweighs all the free snacks and perks,” said Marcus LaRobardiere, 27 year-old Marketing Communications Manager at Bouncepad, a tablet case manufacturing company for businesses. “A lot of companies push the same company culture and employee perks messages as part of their recruiting process, but that’s not always a true differentiator. Being dog friendly gives businesses a chance to reach millennial dog owners, and in turn you get more productive and engaged employees.”

Tips to get your dog ‘ready for work’

1. Get your dog used to the commute. Many dogs travel perfectly happily on public transport buts it’s a good idea to introduce your pet slowly to this. Don’t jump in at rush hour choose quieter times until they are used to it.

2. Exercise your dog before you head into the office. A nice long walk will tire your pet out and help him relax in the new environment; of course they will need short walks and toilet breaks during the day but not quite as much attention if they have a run before and after work.

3. Make sure your office is dog-friendly. It’s a good idea to use a crate if your dog is a little unsettled with everything that is happening at first, this way they have their own safe space to retreat to when it all becomes a bit too much. Also remember they should always have access to water and any food items they are not allowed should be kept safely out the way.

4. Give them time out. Your dog may not be short of attention in the office (especially if you work with a lot of people) however this may become a little over whelming at times so again an area which is their ‘safe area’ is imperative. Make sure your co-workers when your dog is on his blanket or in his crate he doesn’t need to be disturbed.

5. Introduce them slowly. Start bringing your dog in for a few hours, then half a day, slowly build in to a full day so it’s not as over whelming for them (or for your co-workers!)

Of course there are potential drawbacks to having furry friends running around the office, such as accidents on the floor and scuffles with other dogs. Additionally there may be some noise problems with calls and meetings with clients. These can all be managed with well-trained dogs and aware employees. Perhaps the most important drawback is that dog friendly companies could miss out on top talent that does not like dogs or has allergies. Most dog friendly employers typically report that the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

Toilet training your puppy should be quite a simple process, as long as you take the time and trouble to get into a good routine. Initially, you will have to build your routine around your puppy’s needs, and these are reliably predictable when they are very young. Puppies need to urinate immediately after waking up, so you need to be there to take your puppy straight into the garden without any delay.

Eating its meal stimulates its digestive system, and puppies normally urinate within fifteen minutes of eating, and defecate within half an hour of eating (although this might vary slightly with each individual). Puppies have very poor bladder control, and need to urinate at least every hour or two. They can urinate spontaneously when they get excited, so take your puppy out frequently if it has been active, playing or exploring.

You may find it useful to keep a record of when your puppy eats sleeps, urinates and defecates. A simple diary list will do. Repeat cue words like ‘wee wees’ and ‘poo poos’ or ‘be busy’ and ‘be clean’ while the puppy is actually urinating or defecating. Use different words for each action so that you will be able to prompt the puppy later on.

Always go with your puppy into the garden so you are there to reward and attach the cue words to the successful actions! Fortunately, puppies are creatures of habit, so as long as you introduce the garden to your puppy as its toilet area early on, you should be able to avoid most of the common pitfalls.

Unfortunately there are many reasons why ‘toilet training’ might not go as smoothly as it could, so make sure you do not make any of the following mistakes:

Over-feeding.

Feeding an unsuitable diet or giving a variety of foods.

Not feeding at regular times.

Feeding at the wrong times (which could cause overnight defecation).

Punishing the puppy for its indoor accidents (which can make it scared of toileting in front of you – even outside).

Using ammonia based cleaning compounds (which smell similar to urine).

Expecting the puppy to tell you when it needs to go out; this is unrealistic, so it is better to take them out at regular intervals.

Leaving the back door open for the puppy to come and go as it pleases (a puppy will think that the garden is an adventure playground, rather than a toilet area. Also, what is a puppy meant to

do when the weather gets cold, and it is faced with a closed back door?).

Leaving the puppy on its own too long, so that it is forced to go indoors (which sets a bad precedent, or even a habit of going indoors).

Mistakenly associating the words ‘good girl’ or ‘good boy’ when they toilet, as opposed to the specific cue words. Guess what could happen the next time you praise your dog?

Access to rugs or carpet (which are nice and absorbent – just like grass).

Laziness on your part, resulting in more wees indoors than outdoors.

Leaving the puppy alone in the garden, so you are not there to reward it for going outdoors… how is it meant to learn that it is more popular and advantageous going outdoors, if you are not there to show your approval?

It is unfair to expect your puppy to go right through the night when it is very young.

Sleeping the puppy in a crate or puppy pen can help with house training but you should let it out in the garden to relieve itself during the night.

Watch The BBC series 10 Puppies and Us to find out how new puppy Maple gets on with toilet training!

Having a flooring which easy to clean and does not absorb moisture due to the double laminated wear layer is of great benefit during these times. Fortunately ‘Floors for Paws’ offers all of this along with style and durability.

Belle had her operation on Friday 23rd June, the operation itself took longer than they initially thought and she ended up in theatre for over three hours. The operation was very successful and she was stable throughout.

I collected Belle on the Tuesday after her operation, the vets were very concerned about the type of floors we had in the house. Belle slipping could potentially cause her wound to open so it was imperative that that our flooring was anti slip, once I explained our living room and kitchen was decked out in flooring designed specifically for ‘paws’ they told me to contain her to these areas only. Belle has been a little unstable on her three legs but generally doing very well, the only time she has fallen was when she escaped into the play room which has a completely smooth solid wooden floor.

The first couple of weeks it was imperative that Belle was kept quiet and calm; this was a feat in itself considering I have a three year old and a puppy who love playing together! Belle was very confident walking on our anti slip flooring which helped her adjust to her new situation; it took her a little longer to get back to running across fields and up and down dykes. When we go walking it is across country and I can guarantee I come back with a muddy dog and filthy child; both are oblivious to the state to their dirty wellies and muddy paws and think nothing of walking straight into the house. Luckily my ‘floor for paws’ takes everything we can throw at it and comes up sparkling after a good clean. Belle also has a habit of taking all her food out of her bowl dropping each bit on the floor before she eats it; but I don’t stress about that, I don’t worry about the paint splodges, spilt drinks, kicked over bowls of water or the occasional wee. One of the reassuring things floors for paws offers is a 30 year domestic guarantee on all their products so I have one less thing to worry about for the time being!

It might sound crazy but it’s not uncommon for dogs to require major surgery following an injury caused by simply slipping on smooth flooring at home. The most common injuries are bruises, pulled muscles and torn ligaments however serious bone and hip injuries can also occur. If your dog is young and excitable they are more likely to receive injuries many of which can affect them throughout their lives and cause problems such as arthritis in later years.

Fortunately there are several things we can do to ensure our homes are as safe as possible for our four legged family members:

1. Keep your dogs nails short – overgrown nails and toe fur can contribute to a dogs difficulty maintaining good contact with smooth surfaces and increase the likelihood of slipping

2. Keep your dog in shape – if your dog is a healthy weight there will be less pressure on his joints and walking will be easier. Feeding your dog a healthy diet of wholesome
nutritious food and taking them for regular exercise is essential for your dogs well being

3. Dry paw pads are often a cause for dogs having traction and slipping issues, unprotected contact with hot pavements, snow and sand can lead to the development of dry paw pads. When
the skin is overly dry it lacks the capability to grip and causes paws to slide across smooth surfaces. There are many pad moisturisers specifically designed for dried out paws now
on the market.

4. There are a number of products on the market which can make it easier for your pet to walk on slippery surfaces. Non-slip dog socks are an idea solution; they provide traction to
prevent slipping and ideal for older dogs who suffer from arthritis or hip dysplasia. If your dog will not keep socks on then there are self adhesive traction pads which can be
stuck directly onto your dogs paws.

5. Adding carpet runners or rugs to areas where your dogs spend a lot of time could be another solution; however please make sure rugs and runners are secured properly to avoid an
entirely new form of slipping!

Which Flooring do I choose ?

Flooring not only takes the brunt of our everyday activities they are also the starting place of our interior scheme; flooring can dictate the entire decor of a room. There is a lot of pressure to find the right flooring for your house this coupled with the vast amount of choice on the market can make it a minefield. Below we have listed some pros and cons of different flooring types.